Adventist Health St. Helena (Calif.) is looking for a partner to promote its services and improve its financial situation, the St. Helena Star reported July 25.
Steven Herber, MD, president of the hospital, told the publication it is in talks with several potential partners, but did not identify any of them due to confidentiality agreements.
Challenges arising from the pandemic — including nurses and physicians retiring, local hospitals competing for s small pool of healthcare workers and the rising cost of labor — led Adventist Health St. Helena to begin a new search for a partner, according to the report.
The hospital's parent company, Roseville, Calif.-based Adventist Health, believe that a new partner could help Adventist Health St. Helena market some of its high-acuity services, such as orthopedics and atrial fibrillation, to patients beyond its local area.
"We've got capacity. We've got these wonderful programs, but we're not as busy as we could be or need to be," Dr. Herber told the Star. "A partner might help us get the word out more effectively."